Swedes' Gaming Habits and Economy 2026

Just over a thousand Swedes who regularly play at online casinos participated in a survey about gaming and payment habits in March 2026.

The results show significant variation. Most players stick to a gaming budget of under 500 SEK per month, but there is also a small group spending several thousand kronor. These variations can be linked to gender, age, and where in the country the players reside.

From hundreds to thousands per month

The largest group, representing six out of ten participants, stated that they spend less than 500 SEK per month on online casinos. Just under a quarter spends more than 1 000 SEK. For a small minority, slightly over 2 %, the amount exceeds 5 000 SEK.

Behind these figures is Casinorino.se, which enlisted the analysis firm Norstat to question 1 010 Swedish online casino players aged 18 to 65.

Not surprisingly, there is a strong correlation between how often one plays and how much is spent. Among those who do not play frequently, 84 % spend under 500 SEK per month. For daily players, the picture is different: 65 % of them spend at least 1 000 SEK.

According to the Swedish Gambling Authority's statistics, commercial online gaming with a Swedish license, which includes online casinos and sports betting, generated a total turnover of 4 951 million SEK during the fourth quarter of 2025.

Men spend more, but the difference is not dramatic

Among the men in the survey, 18 % spend more than 1 000 SEK per month, compared to 12 % of women. The difference is slightly more pronounced in gaming frequency. Four out of ten men play at least once a week, compared to three out of ten women.

Regarding the players' age, it primarily influences what is prioritized when choosing a casino, rather than the amounts spent. A quarter of those aged 18 to 34 consider bonuses to be the most important factor. In the 55 to 65 age group, this share drops to just over one-tenth. Even older players instead value factors such as accessibility and a stable game selection.

Where in Sweden do people play and spend the most?

Stockholmers stand out in the statistics. 21 % of those living in the Stockholm region spend more than 1 000 SEK per month, compared to 13 % in the rest of Sweden. The proportion who consider it important to stick to Swedish-licensed gaming sites is also lowest in Stockholm.

Regarding how dependent one considers themselves to be on gaming, Central Sweden stands out, in a negative sense. In the southern part of the country, as well as in Upper Norrland, fewer people feel that their gaming habit is difficult to break. The difference is as large as from 9.2 % to 1.2 %.

Fast withdrawals weigh heaviest – Swish dominates

Seven out of ten players state that Swish is the payment method they primarily use. Other payment methods are distributed as follows:

• Debit card: 11 %
• Trustly: 6 %
• Apple Pay or Google Pay: 6 %
• Zimpler: 1 %

The dominance of Swish aligns well with how Swedes use digital payments. Many people use this method in other contexts, are familiar with it, and appreciate its speed.

Speed, particularly regarding withdrawals of winnings, ranks high on the priority list when choosing a gaming site. Players rank different factors as follows:

• Fast withdrawals: 24 %
• Swedish license: 22 %
• Bonuses: 18 %
• Customer service: 0.5 %

A tightened credit card ban: Who is affected?

On May 1, 2026, a tightened ban on credit card payments at Swedish online casinos came into effect. Casinorino's survey, conducted shortly before this, included a question about expected impact. Of those questioned, 66 % stated they did not believe they would be affected at all by the legislative change, while 20 % planned to switch to Swish or Trustly.

Among high rollers, i.e., those who spend more than 1 000 SEK per month, 8 % actually intended to reduce their gaming due to the ban. The low proportion planning to cut back suggests that credit card usage is not as significant as one might have expected.

What effect the regulatory tightening will have on indebtedness due to online gaming remains to be seen. As always when Swedish regulations are tightened, there is a risk that more players will turn to foreign gaming sites. However, if we trust what the respondents in the survey indicate, only slightly over 1 % plan to do so.

However, even before the legislative change came into effect, approximately one-tenth of players had four or more active casino accounts. Of these, 45 % played on sites lacking a Swedish license.

The credit card ban from an indebtedness perspective

According to data from Ekonomifakta, the total debts of Swedish households amounted to just over 5 000 billion SEK during the fourth quarter of 2025. This corresponds to approximately 83 % of the country's GDP. Since the mid-1990s, debts have also grown faster than incomes.

This picture primarily reflects mortgage loans rather than gaming-related debts. No direct correlation with the economy of casino players can be deduced from these figures.

The ban on credit card payments at online casinos, however, resembles previous measures aimed at loan-financed consumption. The mortgage cap in 2010, the amortization requirements from 2016 and 2018, as well as the proposal the government put forward in June 2025 to raise the cap to 90 %, all share the same purpose: namely, to limit expenses financed through credit.